Monday, 28 September 2009

I have been catching up with friends in Manila today via email. They all seem OK, though Lida's house was flooded on the ground floor and some of Dan's family had to be rescued. Worryingly it seems there is more rain on the way.

I know the Watchtower Society will get their helpers there as quickly as possible.

We shopped this morning, as Captain Butterfly is cooking for me and Jacks tonight - one of his bolognese/chile specials. I have just tasted the result so far and we both agree its very tasty but needs tomato puree adding.

We shall find out tonight if Jules was able to set off for Manila or not. Things look very bad over there, according to the News.

Friday, 25 September 2009

A quiet day, which is all we can cope with at the moment. I went with the Captain to his physio this morning, then we shopped, and he chose some food - was quite picky about it, insisting on strawberry blancmange and lemon jelly. So he is feeling much better. He hasn't eaten for days. I did my WT study, and we spoke to Bea and to Audrey on the phone, and I emailed Linda about her house buying. We then went out again! Dizzy excitement. To the Farm Shop, as Captain Fussy wouldn't have supermarket cheese or bread. I also picked up some nice looking pears and we got some pasties. When we got to the checkout, we found all the computers had broken down and they couldn't take credit cards. Thankfully, we just managed to scrape enough cash together.

We are now looking forward to Strictly Come Dancing.

The Captain's personality is definitely coming back on line - which is quite scarey - but also a wonderful relief.

Tuesday, 22 September 2009

It has a beautiful sadness about it though - and September is a wonderful month. Adam, our forefather, probably opened his eyes into an Autumn garden. A garden that was Paradise.

When you think what beautiful gardens we, his imperfect and dying children, have created, how beautiful must that garden have been? A garden planted by Jehovah himself.

Anyway, for the moment its lost. And that Horseman of Sickness is riding hard. Everyone seems to be ill, or having accidents. The poor Captain is getting worse - was at the doctors this morning - and is now sleeping. One of my brothers in the congregation has just had a bad fall, another is down with a bad fluey cold, and so it goes.

I only did three quarters of an hour with Audrey this morning, as I wanted to get back to Him Indoors and see how he was. But we got a lot of return visits done. She has given me a DVD produced by the Watchtower Society. Its the Noah and David one. I look forward to seeing it.

A quiet day now - housework after our visitors - I am doing the usual sheet and towel wash and having a general sort and tidy. And I am reading James Herriott to the Captain - it is cheering us both up.

I wrote these little poems about a Sheffield September many years ago.

SEPTEMBER IN SHEFFIELD

Warmed in the glow of the afternoon sunBasil claws at his shaggy brown carpet mumI write my letters and drink my teaBasil cleans and preens and purrs at me.

In a sunny September in SheffieldBasil and ISun ourselves under the bluest skyYou could imagineNo summer sun could ever compareWith the Autumn sun , this atmosphereIn which Basil basks, and I purr.

Saturday, 19 September 2009

We - Bea, the Captain and me - have been watching the new Strictly Come Dancing and all agree that Martina Hingis should not have been the first voted off.

We liked her, and thought her a great dancer.

It was a pretty quiet day. The Captain overdid it yesterday, but did manage a brief shop with Bea this morning while I was out on the field service.

We worked in a road that was easy to park on! That is always such a relief. And i worked with Jean. We had a lovely conversation with a lady from Zimbabwe - and met a young Polish guy. We did some of Jean's magazine calls. Ron, the brother taking the group, said he will work with me next week, so I hope we can as I think I will learn a lot. He is a very warm, people person, unlike me.

I always learn a lot from working with Jean. She too is very warm and people-centred - and above all God-centred. She said she so much hoped that the Captain would join us one day. And of course that is what I hope so much too.

It might seem impossible sometimes - but we know that love 'hopes all things'.

Had my first nightmare for many many years last night - but it turned out OK because I remembered to call out to Jehovah for help in the middle of it. What a difference that makes.

Yet another of the many many reasons why I wish I could get through to people on the doorsteps.

Friday, 18 September 2009

We all went to Swanbourne Lake for lunch today - a very good lunch too. Bea and I fed the swans, ducks, coots, you name its (in flocks) while the Captain and his walking stick rested on a nearby bench. We then drove into Arundel, and Bea and I shopped while the Captain and his walking stick rested... well, you know the rest.

I bought H.G.Well's 'Love and Mr.Lewisham' at the bookshop at the bottom of the hill, and am enjoying it. Mr.Lewisham and Ethel are just starting out married life with hardly a penny to their name and i only hope it works out well for them.

Wells gives an interesting description of the Thames in winter:

"The Tower Bridge with its crest of snow, huge pendant icicles, and the ice blocks choked in its side arches.... the Thames...ice-fringed along either shore, and with drift-ice in the middle reflecting a luminous scarlet from the broad red setting sun..."

Would this be a winter he remembered from his childhood I wonder, or a standard winter at the time?

I am not sure we have even begun to understand the immense patterns of the weather.

Tuesday, 15 September 2009

Went out with Audrey this morning - I turned up very late for the meeting as the entrance to the Kingdom Hall parking was blocked by an enormous removal van. Anyway, we finally met up - Ken kindly ran us back to my car - and off we went. Across the railway line - and back again - with that worrying turn into traffic! And then into the little close opposite the Kingdom Hall, where its so difficult to get back out as its into traffic on a corner. Anyway, with my asking of Jah for his help, we did it. We got Audrey's magazine round done and visited a couple of my not homes - who were Not Home.

The Captain - finally on the mend - has driven Bea back home so she can pick up more stuff and come back here for a few more days rest and recuperation.

They will be back sometime this evening for a salad tea - and I must now go and stuff the eggs.

Wednesday, 9 September 2009

I was up at 5.30 this morning and it was only just starting to lighten. The morning star was shining so brightly over the English channel. It made me think of those lovely words in Revelation, when Jesus tells us:

"I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright morning star."

Its easy to see the holiness of the world in the quiet of the early morning - a good time for praying.

Well, I had a couple of driving challenges today. One I flunked, but had to take the other challenge. I took Audrey to the bank, and she directed me into the parking area in front of the shops in the village high street. I have never been in there before. There were some parking spaces opposite the bank but I would have had to back into them, in a very confined area, and would have blocked loads of furious drivers if I had had to do one of my 50 point turns. So I waited outside until I had to move - blocking drivers who wanted to unpark - and so had to drive round the block, i.e. get across the traffic and insert myself into the traffic lights queue.

Anyway, with a lot of praying, I did it, and Audrey was outside the bank waiting for me when I got back round.

She has really helped me with my driving!

She came back to the flat and we had tea and watched the new DVD: The Wonders of Creation Reveal God's Glory.

It was wonderful of course, and even Captain Butterfly (still an Evolutionist, though he is prepared to admit it is still a theory, unproved) watched some of it with us.

Then I took Audrey back and did the shopping.

She has knitted me another beautiful scarf. I am getting quite a designer wardrobe of them now, starting with Bea's handpainted silk Clarice Cliffe style one. And soon I shall be able to start wearing them again, as Winter is on its way.

Monday, 7 September 2009

A beautiful day too - the perfection of Autumn. Its 7.30 in the evening and the Channel is fading from blue to grey.

We got the sad news yesterday that a friend of ours in Saudi has cancer. i sent her off a card today and hope to get a letter done this week. Its hard to think of any practical ways to help from here. She is a beautiful American nurse, known to the Captain and his friends as 'the blonde bombshell'.

I got the Captain's painkillers from the Pharmacy, and did some housework and cooked, but that was about it. We had a tofu and veggie stir fry this evening.

We had a lovely afternoon round at Jackie's yesterday, and met all the family, and the corner house friend (at last!).

I long for the time on the earth that Jehovah has promised us - when "no resident will say: 'I am sick'". And I plan to be out with Audrey tomorrow morning, trying to alert others to these promises

Saturday, 5 September 2009

The Captain is still hobbling about on his walking stick - and the butterfly season is over.

Jacks is back! She came round for drinks and nibbles last night - and we are invited over for lunch tomorrow.

Linda came over for the day this week, with lots of homemade jam and chutney for us. I am having her Sussex picked blackberry jam with my breakfast toast. She and Nick and looking at houses.

I did go out with Maggie and we did some return visits, but I feel very guilty as I did not go out this morning - I shopped and have dozed and slept all day. I think maybe all the weeks of broken nights have got to me - the poor old Captain has been finding it very hard to sleep.

Pen is signing the three of us up for a writers week in Wales next year. She should have her first thriller published by then .